Never Forgotten
by darkestboy
Summary: The Doctor and Sarah Jane exchange a phone conversation. Set after Journey's End.


**Name:** Never Forgotten  
**Characters: **10th Doctor, Sarah Jane Smith, Luke Smith, Maria Jackson, Alan Jackson, Clyde Langer, Mr Smith, Rani Chandra, Haresh Chadra, Gita Chandra  
**Synopsis: **Following her recent reunion with the Doctor, Sarah Jane discusses her past with the Time Lord with Maria, Clyde and Luke. Elsewhere, Rani is about to discover that she's moving to a new neighbourhood. Set between _Journey's End_ and _The Last Sontaran_.

"You act like such a lonely man but you've got the biggest family on Earth," Sarah Jane couldn't help but point out to her former mentor.

"I know," the Doctor smiled. "Farewell, Sarah Jane. Someday I might have to take a trip to Bannerman Road to see how that big old computer and Luke really get things done. The latter could run rings around me."

As the Doctor shot her a cheeky wink as well as that infectious smile of his, Sarah Jane warmly smiled back and headed on her way. Luckily she didn't have too long a journey back to her own home and was relieved to find that her car hadn't been stolen. Then again a lot of people, including the less savoury of folk had the good sense to stay inside during the Daleks reign of terror. With that, Sarah Jane got into her beloved car and drove the rest of the way home, not that it took her long to get there.

"Luke, I'm back," Sarah Jane called as she entered the house, happy to see it still intact.

"Up here Mum."

When she came upstairs, Sarah Jane realised that she wasn't alone. While K9 had departed again, Luke and Mr Smith were accompanied by Maria, Alan and Clyde, all of them happy to see her but all of them having looks of curiosity on their faces.

"Missed you," Sarah Jane smiled as she hugged Luke and then made her way to hug Clyde, Maria and Alan. "I thought you were in Cornwall?"

"Madam here insisted we came back to see if you were alright," Alan smiled as Maria gave him a look.

"We were worried," Maria added. "I mean all those planets in the sky and everything."

"What exactly happened, Sarah?" Clyde asked. "And who's this Doctor bloke when he's at home?"

"It's complicated," Sarah Jane replied.

"Isn't everything?" Alan said. "He saved the world, didn't he?"

"It was a bit more of a team effort," Luke pointed, slightly boastful. "K9 even helped save the day."

"And there was Torchwood and everyone in the TARDIS," Sarah Jane elaborated. "It really was something else."

Before Sarah Jane could further give a response, her phone went off. It was the Doctor. The elated look on her face meant that everyone had figured out who her caller was and didn't mind when she stepped outside of her attic to talk to him in private. Unfortunately the conversation hadn't been to confirm a date to meet Luke and Mr Smith but more to warn her about him wiping Donna's memories in case her path crossed with the fiery redhead again.

This was a side to the Doctor that often made Sarah Jane sad. Davros had bleated on in the Crucible that despite his abhorrence of violence, the Doctor had a tendency to fashion his companions into soldiers. Davros hadn't realised that such a fashioning had positive connotations too — people who were willing to lay down their lives for the protection of others.

Right now all she could do was offer him some comforting words of support. The whole Human/Time Lord Metacrisis wasn't his fault and Sarah was aware that by erasing Donna's memories, the Doctor was effectively saving her life but at the same time, the Doctor wasn't someone Sarah thought could function on his own. If circumstances were different, she'd join him but she had Luke, Maria and Clyde to consider and they had to come first.

Instead she offered him the chance to come and stay with her, perhaps do some Earthbound work for a bit. The Doctor made a light joke about the UNIT days but kindly declined, stating that he needed some time to gather his thoughts. Sarah didn't take it personally.

"Are you sure, you're gonna be alright?" Sarah Jane asked, her voice low and soothing.

"I'll be fine," the Doctor replied, concealing his anguish. "I'll see you soon, though."

"Take care."

"Always," and with that, the Doctor hung up and Sarah Jane went back into the attic to face some more questioning.

"How is our time traveller?" Clyde asked. "Are we going to meet him some time soon?"

"Not yet," Sarah Jane answered. "He needs some time alone."

"Is he alright?" Maria asked, expressing concern, despite the Doctor being an absolute stranger to her.

"He's a survivor. Whatever's thrown at him, he overcomes it. He's the strongest man I've ever met."

"Sounds like you love him," Alan mused, though not teasingly.

"I do but not like that," Sarah Jane pointed out. "He changed my life for the better. Opened my eyes in ways that I never knew were possible. Even when we were all at the mercy of Davros and the Daleks, it was still him and Donna Noble who came riding through to help save the day. Well, another him but that's a different story but he's someone I could never forget."

"Sounds like a top bloke," Clyde said, admiringly. "Maybe we could all use a Doctor."

"Maybe," Sarah Jane smiled. "But right now, perhaps we should see what other alien activity has surfaced since last night. Mr Smith, I need you."

With that the booming effect came and Mr Smith was active, showing Sarah Jane some erratic signs of alien activity in a local church. Alan sat back impressed at the goings on and how amazingly proactive Maria, Luke and Clyde became when the sign of danger was present.

Elsewhere in another part of London, Rani Chandra had been distracted from her extensive use of her research on the internet to the sound of her parents calling her downstairs. She was hoping that she wasn't in trouble but sometimes being the daughter of a Headmaster can put you under a lot of scrutiny.

"We've got some news," Gita trilled, making Rani feel somewhat relieved at the same time.

"I'm all ears," Rani replied. "What's the big scoop?"

"I've accepted the position of Headmaster so it looks like we'll be house hunting in Bannerman Road," Haresh said. "What do you think?"

"Neat," Rani responded sincerely. "I've got to finish an art project."

With that, Rani was back on her computer, surfing through a forum that was discussing whether or not the 26 planets in the sky had been a hoax. Rani wondered to herself in anything exciting apart from an alleged Dalek invasion happened on Bannerman Road. The last place she wanted to move to was a street devoid of any excitement.

- The End -


End file.
